Chapter 55 The Stubborn Woman's Lament (Part 5) Eating Meat
Two pairs of black boots stepped onto the bluestone path. As soon as she stopped, Song Qiling turned her feet slightly and looked back at the painted boat on the lake. She couldn't help but feel a little dazed, as if she didn't know what year it was.
"Junior brother, how long have we been out?" Her voice sounded somewhat confused.
Gu Lianzhou looked up at the position of the sun and roughly estimated, "It has been about two hours."
Two hours is not a short time.
Song Qiling rubbed her stomach and muttered, "No wonder I always feel like my stomach is empty."
She glanced at her junior brother, a slight smile playing on her lips: "How is it? You've finally found out about your senior uncle, feeling much more at ease now, right?"
Gu Lianzhou nodded: "Yes, it's good to know that my uncle is alright. I won't insist on anything else."
He accepted it quickly.
Thinking of Luo Qingyu's charming appearance, Song Qiling couldn't help but tease, "I never imagined that my martial aunt had such a romantic past. It's truly impressive."
A hint of embarrassment flashed across Gu Lianzhou's face: "I'm sorry for making you laugh, Senior Brother."
He paused, as if he had thought of something, and asked in confusion, "Senior brother, aren't the sorcerers of the Heavenly Mystery Sect determined to eradicate all evil spirits and restore peace to the people? Why are you different from the rumors?"
"You yourself said it was just a rumor." Song Qiling curled her lip and said, "Leaving aside Luo Qingyu's powerful demonic energy, which ordinary sorcerers would find difficult to contend with, just the fact that she holds information about my martial uncle is enough for me to not turn against her. Making an enemy is easy, but turning hostility into friendship is difficult. If I were to make a move today, neither of us would have disembarked unscathed, let alone have the chance to chat here."
Gu Lianzhou understood: "Senior brother has great foresight."
"Don't flatter me." Song Qiling walked back the way she came and said calmly, "Luo Qingyu makes a living with a painted boat and has not done anything immoral. As you saw just now, the musicians' fingers are also covered with thick calluses. They must be honest and hardworking craftsmen. Moreover, since we boarded the boat, we haven't heard any other decadent music except for the sound of string and wind instruments. It can be seen that Pingkangfang is not as improper as it seems on the surface."
"Perhaps, she is an evil spirit manifested from the resentment of the actors at the bottom of the pleasure boat."
The images of what she had seen and heard in the illusion flashed through her mind. Song Qiling pursed her lips and remained silent.
The two crawled back through the dog hole, returning to the bustling West Street covered in dust and dirt. Hearing the hawkers' cries all over the street and smelling the aroma of food wafting from somewhere, they felt their stomachs growling with hunger, as if they had returned to the human world.
"Junior brother, I want to eat meat." Song Qiling pointed to the 'Drunken Immortal Pavilion' in front of him and said, "I've spent all my money in Pingkang Ward, and now I can only rely on you."
Gu Lianzhou raised his hand and touched the leather money pouch at his waist, and said with a smile, "Alright, it's my treat today. Senior Brother, eat whatever you like."
It was lunchtime, and all the private rooms at Zuixianlou were booked, leaving only a small table in the corner of the hall empty. As soon as Song Qiling sat down, a waiter came up to greet her and said, "What would you like to eat, sir? Our signature dishes are all hanging on the wall. Please take a look when you get back."
Upon hearing this, Song Qiling turned her head and looked at the row of small sandalwood plaques on the wall, each one polished to a glossy shine, with various dish names written on them in thick ink, so densely packed that it made one dizzy just looking at them.
Song Qiling was really hungry and didn't have the patience to look at everything carefully. She only ordered one meat dish, one vegetable dish, and one soup, along with two bowls of rice, and that was it.
Seeing the waiter go to prepare, Gu Lianzhou couldn't help but say, "Senior brother, how can just two dishes and a soup be enough? Didn't you want to eat meat? Why not order more dishes?"
Song Qiling took out chopsticks from the bamboo tube on the table and handed them to the other person, saying, "I'm thinking that there will be many places where we need money in the future, so we should save as much as we can."
It was the first time Gu Lianzhou had ever heard someone advise him to save money, so he couldn't help but feel a little curious: "Senior brother, it's alright. I still have some savings in a silver shop in Zhuanzhu Lane in the south of the city. If you need to use them, just take your name tag to get them."
Do you still have savings?
Song Qiling's hand holding the chopsticks trembled slightly, and the next moment she saw Gu Lianzhou considerately take them from her, smiling brightly at her, "Senior brother, order whatever you want to eat. If we can't finish it, we can pack it up in a bag and take it with us."
"Tell me first, how much savings do you have?" She casually picked up the teapot beside her and poured some into a cup.
Gu Lianzhou hesitated and said, "I can't remember exactly, but it was around a million taels of silver? Anyway, it's enough for food."
The teapot was slammed down with a loud "bang," attracting the attention of the surrounding diners.
Song Qiling picked up the teacup, brought it to her lips, and drank it all in one gulp. She felt as if she had chewed two pounds of green apricots, so sour that she couldn't catch her breath.
More than a million taels, not just a hundred taels?
How come she never realized before that her junior brother was so wealthy and powerful?
Looking up again, he saw that his junior brother was surrounded by a golden light, making him seem untouchable. "Master Gu, when you go out, don't you hire any thugs or anything?"
She raised an eyebrow slightly, her face contorted with sarcasm, and said, "Aren't you afraid of running into bandits who will trade your life for money?"
Gu Lianzhou smiled and said, "Isn't that because of you, Senior Brother?"
"..."
Upon hearing this, Song Qiling was taken aback. Her conscience was awakened by this person, and her bloodshot eyes instantly became clear.
Oh right, she had almost forgotten that there was still a business deal between Gu Lianzhou and her that hadn't been settled.
Therefore, in less than two breaths, the breath in his chest was relieved.
Song Qiling reached out and took the cup from his junior brother's hand, filled it with tea, and showed an unusually attentive expression: "Young Master, have a cup of tea to moisten your throat first, and I will call the waiter over to add more dishes."
The young master himself: "..."
What's wrong with you, senior brother?
In the time it takes for half an incense stick to burn, the table is piled high with all sorts of dishes, including braised goose breast, crab meat lion's head meatballs, Longjing shrimp, and braised meats that I can't name. They are all rich and flavorful, and the aroma is irresistible. Just looking at them makes my mouth water.
She ladled a bowl of duck soup and handed it to her junior brother, then shakily picked up a fist-sized meatball with her chopsticks and placed it on the rice in front of him, making Gu Lianzhou feel flattered and overwhelmed.
"Senior brother, that's enough, that's enough." Gu Lianzhou raised his hand to support her arm, saying anxiously.
If you pinch him again, he won't know where to start eating.
Upon hearing this, Song Qiling reluctantly let go of his hand. During the meal, however, her mind wandered, and the thought of soon receiving her reward from the person before her made her want to laugh.
Then she laughed out loud.
Gu Lianzhou was already feeling uncomfortable under the gaze, and when he saw his senior brother suddenly smile, he stopped eating and asked nervously, "Senior brother, are you feeling unwell?"
Song Qiling shook her head, picked up a shrimp and put it in her mouth, saying vaguely, "No, I feel perfectly fine."
What does this mean?
Gu Lianzhou couldn't figure it out, so he could only lower his head and continue eating.
After the meal, the two each carried a food box back to the Murong residence.
Before even entering the gate, one could see from afar that the open space in front of the Murong family mansion was bustling with people and carriages.
Just as he was wondering about this, he suddenly saw Murong Xiao standing in front of the door, followed by a group of relatives and servants. When he saw someone getting off the carriage, he went forward and greeted him with clasped hands.
Then look at the emblem flag hanging on the car, which has a celadon base with gilded fish patterns and the character "Jiang" written on it.
“It is one of the Tianshui families, specializing in water transport, and is in charge of the ‘Thousand Boat Alliance’ of the Yangtze River canal,” Gu Lianzhou explained.
Then I saw a tall, imposing carriage with a banner bearing a snake and an eagle, and the character "裘" (Qiu) written on it.
"This is the Longxi branch of the Tianshui family's gold trading company, which controls the western section of the trade route. The man in the lead is none other than Qiu Xuechen, the head of the gold trading company."
Upon hearing this, Song Qiling looked over and saw a burly man with a beard walking towards Murong Xiao with square steps. She subconsciously asked, "Is the Murong family ranked among the top in Tianshui?"
Gu Lianzhou lowered his eyes and pondered for a moment before replying, "The Murong family belongs to the Nanchuan branch and is not on the list."
Song Qiling couldn't help but sigh: "Even a prestigious family of cunning swordsmen isn't on the list. How were these rankings determined?"
Her eyes darted around for a moment before finally settling on her junior brother's face. She couldn't help but say, "Could it be that they're ranked by wealth?"
Gu Lianzhou was speechless.
Song Qiling then understood everything: "It really is..."
No wonder these carriages are all so impressive; it turns out that wealthy merchants have arrived.
Seeing that distinguished guests kept arriving at the Murong family's gate, making it impossible to find a chance to enter, Song Qiling raised her hand to rub her sore neck and sighed softly, "Is the entire Tianshui family here? It must be lively tonight."
"It should be for the grand competition the day after tomorrow." Gu Lianzhou thought for a moment, then added, "Perhaps it is also related to the birthday banquet of the old lady of the Nancheng Prince's Mansion."
Upon suddenly hearing the news from the Prince of Nancheng's Mansion, Song Qiling's eyelids twitched, and she said, "Isn't the whole city aware of the old lady's birthday?"
Gu Lianzhou nodded, "It's only natural that we should have a grand celebration for the old lady's birthday. The Murong family can also take advantage of this opportunity to recruit talented people, which will make it easier for those who want to receive invitations."
"Have you received your calling card?" Song Qiling asked lazily, arms crossed.
Gu Lianzhou laughed and said, "The Gu family did receive the visiting card, but I was still unconscious at the time, so how could it have been handed to me?"
“That’s true.” Song Qiling’s feet started to ache from standing for so long, and she gradually lost patience. “Waiting like this is really boring. Let’s find a shady place to sit down.”
Gu Lianzhou readily agreed.
The two hit it off immediately, picked up the food box from the ground, and turned to head towards the teahouse.
-
However, it was just past noon, and the sun was still blazing. It shone through the roof tiles, leaving grooves on the bluestone slabs. The four ink characters of "Lao Huang Tea House" were worn down by the wind and rain, curled at the edges, and drooped on the flagpole, looking like a snake's shed skin.
Song Qiling sat down under the 'snake skin', holding a cup of perilla fruit drink and slowly savoring it, her gaze drifting as she looked into the distance.
Having just finished their meal, and feeling drowsy, the two brothers sat quietly facing each other at the low table, saying nothing.
A moment later, an old man with a white beard carrying a basket slowly walked up to them, walked around the tea table, and glanced at the two of them.
Song Qiling followed the sound and looked at the old man, who silently put down the basket and took out a booklet with a blue cover, a pen, and a thick gavel.
Upon seeing this, the shopkeeper hurried over, took the items, placed them on the high table, and then brewed a pot of tea for the old man.
The movements were so practiced that it seemed as if they had been rehearsed a hundred times.
Once everything was ready, the white-bearded man picked up the gavel and slammed it heavily onto the table.
"Bang--"
Song Qiling shuddered and immediately lost all sleepiness.
"Listen attentively, dear readers. Today is the third day of the third lunar month, the Shangsi Festival, a time for purification rituals, bathing, and seeking a partner. Today, I will tell you the story of a couple entangled in a complicated love affair, titled 'Locking the Wutong Tree.'" The old man's voice was thick with the rustling of wind and frost, like the sound of old pine bark peeling away. As soon as he opened his mouth, everyone pricked up their ears, unable to hear anything else.
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